Laptop opinions please

I have been looking at laptops. Satisfied with my HP desktop so figure I would stick w/ HP. Not sure what is the newer and/or better model between the g7 and the dv7 but I found this "17 at a good price. Can someone let me know if it's a good laptop?

There are so many ways to advise, and so many questions that need asked to advise properly.

Basically, buy what you can afford.
If you're into gaming, you'll be needing high Ram (4GB+), a quad core processor minimum and a dedicated graphics card with at least 1GB onboard memory just for graphics.

if all you do is facebook, then 2GB ram, dual core processor and shared graphics will do.

When i buy a laptop, i make sure the processor and graphics card are up to speed, as i can add RAM and hard drives if i need it later.
I also look for an SD card slot for my camera's card, and now i look for ones with a USB 3.0 slot (around 10x faster than USB 2.0)
I also look for a HDMI output so i can use my TV as a display for my Scuba Diving videos.
I also like a Lightscribe DVD drive, so i can make fancy disks.
built in webcams dont bother me at all, but i like a big screen.

The next person to advise will be in total conflict, as their needs are much different to mine.

My advice is this: find one you like the look of, get the model number, check it out online for prices and other users comments, then barter with the salesperson to get the best deal. Sometimes, you can get a laptop bag, and perhaps an external drive for a discount as a bulk deal. Don't fall for the 50% off antivirus tho... you can get great ones for free, regardless what the salesperson may tell you. And yes, they DO remove the viruses as well! (a common sales tactic is to tell you the free ones only quarantine the virus, not remove it. Truth is, thats basically what they all do! )

The Following User Says Thank You to MrDarn For This Useful Post:

Hi turquoise 122,
Over the years of being here at H2G and from personal experience, I've come to the conclusion that HP has had its problems re: laptops .. certainly from my own experience for sure. Hp has not had a great record in coming clean with installing hardware that should have been recalled (other companies too, but HP has been in the spotlight more often). What I will tell you though is that Toshiba, while nothing is perfect, seems to come out tops with our membership and personally (I'm not on their payroll!!!).

Others will have their preferences, so stay tuned, these are my own thoughts on the subject.

The Following User Says Thank You to Canuck For This Useful Post:

Hi, turquoise122. My daughter collegekid and i both have toshiba laptops, and are very happy with them.
She has lugged hers to school everyday, and uses it alot. We have had no quality or reliability issues with either one.
Just my opinion, good luck. crash